Sugarcreek Horse Auction

Rain, rain, go away, unfortunately it's here to stay! At least through tomorrow. But we didn't let it stop us from getting out today. It was Horse Auction Day in Sugarcreek and we were going.

The auction started at 11 am and we arrived around 11:30. Didn't see any horses so I asked what time they would bring on the horses and was told around 2 pm. The first thing they auction is a lot of misc. items pertaining to horses care, upkeep etc. We watched for a little while and decided to leave and come back later for the horses.

I had read about the Amish Door restaurant in Wilmont so decided it would be a nice drive there along with a place to have a bite to eat. The drive there didn't disappoint us and the rain actually held off for awhile. We drove through more farmland, past a lot of Amish furniture stores, and through the towns of Walnut Creek, Trail and Winesburg before arriving in Wilmont.

The first stop was to browse through the bakery at the Amish Door. Oh my gosh! They had so much good stuff, breads, cakes, cookies, sweet rolls, fry pies, pies and more! They sell something called cream sticks and they had mini-cream sticks. I figured I'd go back after we ate and get just a couple to try. Next we went to the restaurant where Dean had roast beef, mashed potato's and corn and a cup of the best ham and bean soup. I had the soup and salad bar. Trust me, the salad bar was a meal in itself!! Anyway, we were both full when we left and totally forgot to go back to the bakery - darn - just saved myself some calories - LOL!

We drove back to Sugarcreek and the horse auction in the pouring rain. I guess the skies held off as long as they could. The horses were being auctioned when we arrived but it had just started. I had never been to one and it was something I wanted to experience - don't ask why - I don't know, but just wanted to. They had everything from a miniature pony, to plow horses, to riding horses, to registered horses. What amazed me were the prices - we saw a couple of horses sell for $10 - $40 dollars! There were a few that went into the hundreds but they were the exception. I was talking with a lady behind me who lives in the area and owned a horse ranch. She said that her and her husband decided it was time to sell out because for the last 4-5 years the prices have been dropping fast. One horse that sold for around $600 she said would have brought anywhere from $1200 - 1800 just a few years ago. It's so sad how the downturn in the economy has hurt so much of the American lifestyle. I'm glad we didn't have our granddaughter, Morgan, with us. She would have been begging for us to buy her one of the $10 -$40 horses! She loves horses!

The actual horse auction lasted about one hour. I learned that the owner of the auction purchases a lot of the horses to either re-sell to individuals or to the factories. When I learned that I felt so sad! But, that is the way it goes......

We stopped back at Walnut Creek bulk store for some rolled butter. A friend was telling me about it awhile back and I decided to buy a small piece to try. I'll let you know what I think.

The rain started again after we got home so guess we are in for the rest of the day. The forecast doesn't look good for the rest of the night and tomorrow so we are scraping the plans for the canal boat ride. I think we are going to go to some of the furniture stores and maybe another flea market.

Pictures are posted on Picasa.... Till next time................